Augmented reality direction orientation mask

ABSTRACT

An augmented reality device provides a virtual mask that surrounds the viewer and includes a variation that provides information about the direction to a target item. The variation, which may be a variation in transparency, color, geometric shape, texture, material, lighting, or shading, is associated with the position of the target item so that orientation of the variation in the virtual mask does not change with respect to the direction of the target item. A portion of the virtual mask that is in the direction that the viewer is facing is displayed over the real-world image with the variation in the virtual mask providing information to the viewer about the direction of the target item. When the viewer rotates with respect to the target item, a different portion of the virtual mask that is in the current field of view is displayed.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION(S)

This application is a continuation of U.S. Ser. No. 12/753,701, filedApr. 2, 2010, which is assigned to the assignee hereof and which isincorporated herein by reference.

BACKGROUND

A common means to determine the location of a device is to use asatellite position system (SPS), such as the well-known GlobalPositioning Satellite (GPS) system or Global Navigation Satellite System(GNSS), which employ a number of satellites that are in orbit around theEarth. Position measurements using SPS are based on measurements ofpropagation delay times of SPS signals broadcast from a number oforbiting satellites to an SPS receiver. Once the SPS receiver hasmeasured the signal propagation delays for each satellite, the range toeach satellite can be determined and precise navigation informationincluding 3-dimensional position, velocity and time of day of the SPSreceiver can then be determined using the measured ranges and the knownlocations of the satellites.

Knowledge of the location of a device has many uses, one of which isknown as augmented reality. Augmented reality combines real-worldimagery with computer generated data, such as graphics or textualinformation. Augmented reality may be useful for activities such asnavigation or simply orientating oneself within an environment.

One of the first and most difficult steps in navigation and informationdiscovery is physically orienting oneself in the correct direction. Inorder to make use of data in augmented reality, the user generally needsto find and face the target item with the camera. For data or links, thetarget item is not visible unless the camera is facing the correctdirection. For navigation, incorrect orientation results in the userinitiating navigation in the wrong direction.

Current augmented reality methods for directing the user to turn to facethe target item include the use of directional elements such as arrows.For example, augmented reality systems may use two or three dimensionalarrows in the center or edge of the user's view, indicating rotate leftor right. Another directional element that is currently used is a topview radar type display that indicates the relative distance anddirection to target items.

Current methods of providing orientation information have severalproblems, however. For example, directional arrows do not provideinformation with respect to how far one should turn to face the targetelement. Accordingly, it is difficult to tell how far to turn. Moreover,if the user turns quickly, there is no indication when to slow down soas not to over shoot the desired target item or direction. Further, theuse of top view radar displays is distracting as users find it difficultto interpret or determine its relevance and to relate the top view tothe user's actual surroundings. When used for navigation, currentorientation methods give the user a sense of urgency to orientthemselves to the target item causing the user to engage in potentiallydangerous behavior, e.g., not facing the direction of travel.

SUMMARY

An augmented reality device provides a virtual mask that surrounds theviewer and includes a variation that provides information about thedirection to a target item. The variation, which may be a variation intransparency, color, geometric shape, texture, material, lighting, orshading, is associated with the position of the target item so thatorientation of the variation in the virtual mask does not change withrespect to the direction of the target item. A portion of the virtualmask that is in the direction that the viewer is facing is displayedover the real-world image with the variation in the virtual maskproviding information to the viewer about the direction of the targetitem. When the viewer rotates with respect to the target item, adifferent portion of the virtual mask that is in the current field ofview is displayed.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING

FIG. 1 illustrates an example of an augmented reality device in the formof a mobile platform that provides a virtual mask overlaid on areal-world image to provide orientation information to the user.

FIGS. 2 and 3 illustrate schematically the placement of a virtual maskaround a user.

FIGS. 4 and 5 illustrate schematically the placement of a virtual maskaround a user and show the effect on the virtual mask as the user moveslaterally with respect to a target item.

FIG. 6 is a block diagram of the mobile platform that may use thevirtual mask.

FIG. 7 is a flow chart showing a method of showing the orientationbetween a viewer and a target item in a display using a virtual mask.

FIGS. 8, 9, 10, and 11 illustrate examples of an augmented realityimage, including a virtual mask.

FIGS. 12, 13, 14, and 15 illustrate different examples of cylindricalvirtual masks that may be used.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

FIG. 1 illustrates an example of an augmented reality device in the formof a mobile platform 100 that provides a subtle virtual mask overlaid onthe image in the display 112 to provide orientation information to theuser. The mobile platform 100 may be used for navigation based ondetermining its latitude and longitude using signals from a satellitepositioning system (SPS), which includes satellite vehicles 102, or anyother appropriate source for determining position including cellulartowers 104 or wireless communication access points 106. The mobileplatform 100 includes a camera 120 to generate images of the physicalreal-world environment, as well sensors 130, such as a digital compass,accelerometers or gyroscopes, that can be used to determine theorientation of the mobile platform 100.

The virtual mask that is overlaid on the image shown in the display 112is a computer generated, three-dimensional cylinder or sphere that iscentered on the mobile platform 100 and aligned with a target item. Forexample, the mask may provide a clear view of the real-world image whenthe mobile platform 100 faces the target item. The mask may provide anincreasingly altered view of the real-world image as the mobile platform100 rotates away from the target item. For example, angled sides of theclear area of the mask may be used to provide information to the userabout the location of the target item with respect to the mobileplatform's current orientation. Accordingly, the user is provided witheasily interpreted but subtle and non-distracting orientationinformation.

As used herein, a mobile platform refers to a device such as a cellularor other wireless communication device, personal communication system(PCS) device, personal navigation device (PND), Personal InformationManager (PIM), Personal Digital Assistant (PDA), laptop or othersuitable mobile device which is capable of providing an augmentedreality view of the user's environment. The mobile platform may becompletely or partially mobile, for example, a mobile platform may beheld at a fixed position but allowed to rotate. The mobile platform maybe capable of receiving wireless communication and/or navigationsignals, such as navigation positioning signals. The term “mobileplatform” is also intended to include devices which communicate with apersonal navigation device (PND), such as by short-range wireless,infrared, wireline connection, or other connection—regardless of whethersatellite signal reception, assistance data reception, and/orposition-related processing occurs at the device or at the PND. Also,“mobile platform” is intended to include all devices, including wirelesscommunication devices, computers, laptops, etc. which are capable ofcommunication with a server, such as via the Internet, WiFi, or othernetwork, and regardless of whether satellite signal reception,assistance data reception, and/or position-related processing occurs atthe device, at a server, or at another device associated with thenetwork. Any operable combination of the above are also considered a“mobile platform.”

A satellite positioning system (SPS) that may be used with the mobileplatform 100 typically includes a system of transmitters positioned toenable entities to determine their location on or above the Earth based,at least in part, on signals received from the transmitters. Such atransmitter typically transmits a signal marked with a repeatingpseudo-random noise (PN) code of a set number of chips and may belocated on ground based control stations, user equipment and/or spacevehicles. In a particular example, such transmitters may be located onEarth orbiting satellite vehicles (SVs) 102, illustrated in FIG. 1. Forexample, a SV in a constellation of Global Navigation Satellite System(GNSS) such as Global Positioning System (GPS), Galileo, Glonass orCompass may transmit a signal marked with a PN code that isdistinguishable from PN codes transmitted by other SVs in theconstellation (e.g., using different PN codes for each satellite as inGPS or using the same code on different frequencies as in Glonass).

In accordance with certain aspects, position determination of the mobileplatform 100 is not restricted to using global systems (e.g., GNSS) forSPS. For example, the techniques provided herein may be applied to orotherwise enabled for use in various regional systems, such as, e.g.,Quasi-Zenith Satellite System (QZSS) over Japan, Indian RegionalNavigational Satellite System (IRNSS) over India, Beidou over China,etc., and/or various augmentation systems (e.g., an Satellite BasedAugmentation System (SBAS)) that may be associated with or otherwiseenabled for use with one or more global and/or regional navigationsatellite systems. By way of example but not limitation, an SBAS mayinclude an augmentation system(s) that provides integrity information,differential corrections, etc., such as, e.g., Wide Area AugmentationSystem (WAAS), European Geostationary Navigation Overlay Service(EGNOS), Multi-functional Satellite Augmentation System (MSAS), GPSAided Geo Augmented Navigation or GPS and Geo Augmented Navigationsystem (GAGAN), and/or the like. Thus, as used herein an SPS may includeany combination of one or more global and/or regional navigationsatellite systems and/or augmentation systems, and SPS signals mayinclude SPS, SPS-like, and/or other signals associated with such one ormore SPS.

Moreover, the mobile platform 100 is not limited to use with an SPS, butmay use position determination techniques implemented in conjunctionwith various wireless communication networks, including cellular towers104 and from wireless communication access points 106, such as awireless wide area network (WWAN), a wireless local area network (WLAN),a wireless personal area network (WPAN), and so on. Alternative methodsof position determination may also be used, such as object recognitionusing “computer vision” techniques. The term “network” and “system” areoften used interchangeably. A WWAN may be a Code Division MultipleAccess (CDMA) network, a Time Division Multiple Access (TDMA) network, aFrequency Division Multiple Access (FDMA) network, an OrthogonalFrequency Division Multiple Access (OFDMA) network, a Single-CarrierFrequency Division Multiple Access (SC-FDMA) network, Long TermEvolution (LTE), and so on. A CDMA network may implement one or moreradio access technologies (RATs) such as cdma2000, Wideband-CDMA(W-CDMA), and so on. Cdma2000 includes IS-95, IS-2000, and IS-856standards. A TDMA network may implement Global System for MobileCommunications (GSM), Digital Advanced Mobile Phone System (D-AMPS), orsome other RAT. GSM and W-CDMA are described in documents from aconsortium named “3rd Generation Partnership Project” (3GPP). Cdma2000is described in documents from a consortium named “3rd GenerationPartnership Project 2” (3GPP2). 3GPP and 3GPP2 documents are publiclyavailable. A WLAN may be an IEEE 802.11x network, and a WPAN may be aBluetooth network, an IEEE 802.15x, or some other type of network. Thetechniques may also be implemented in conjunction with any combinationof WWAN, WLAN and/or WPAN.

FIGS. 2 and 3 illustrate schematically the placement of a virtual mask200 around a user 210 by the mobile platform 100. It should beunderstood that FIGS. 2 and 3 do not illustrate what will be shown inthe display 112 of the mobile platform 100, but illustrates functionallyhow the mask 200 operates. FIGS. 2 and 3 show that the mask 200 iscentered on the user 210 and includes a feature, such as a variation inthe transparency of the mask, that indicates the direction to the targetitem 220. The target item 220 may be a place, object, general direction,person, or other similar item and may be stationary or moving. Asillustrated in FIGS. 2 and 3, the most transparent portion 202(illustrated as the white portion) of the mask 200 is directed towardsthe target item 220 from the user's 210 position. The variation in thelevel of transparency of the mask 200 is intended to illustrate thefunction of providing orientation information to the user 210 and notnecessarily how the orientation information is provided, i.e., byincreasing/decreasing the transparency of the view. For example, ifdesired, the transparency level may be held constant, but the area oftransparency may vary. The user's field of view, i.e., the field of viewof camera 120, is illustrated with lines 206, and only the portion ofthe mask 200 that is within the user's field of view 206, i.e.,transparent portion 202 in FIG. 2 and the less-transparent portion 204in FIG. 3, will be displayed over the real-world image produced by thecamera 120 in the display 112. As can be seen in FIGS. 2 and 3, theorientation of the mask 200 is independent of the orientation of theuser 210. For example, in FIG. 2, the user 210 faces the target item220, while in FIG. 3 the user faces 90 degrees away from the target item220 and is, thus, facing a less-transparent portion 204 of the mask 200.Both FIG. 2 and FIG. 3, however, illustrate the transparent portion 202of the mask 200 is associated with the target item 220 in that it isaligned with the target item and the alignment is preserved regardlessof the orientation of the user.

FIGS. 4 and 5 as similar to FIGS. 2 and 3, but show the effect on themask 200 as the user 210 travels along a direction of travel 212. As canbe seen, the mask 200 remains centered on the user 210 and, thus, moveswith the user past the target item 220. The transparent portion 202 ofthe mask 200, however, continues to be aligned with the target item 220as the user 210 and mask 200 move past the target item 220. Thus, inFIG. 4, the transparent portion 202 of the mask 200 is shown as beingapproximately 45 degrees from direction of travel 212 and is slightlyout of the field of view 206 of the user. Accordingly, in FIG. 4,portion 203 of the mask 200 will be displayed over the real-world image.In FIG. 5 the transparent portion 202 is nearly 90 degrees from thefield of view 206 of the user 210 and, thus, a different portion 205will be displayed over the real-world image shown in display 112.

The alignment of the portion of the virtual mask 200 that is displayedmay be vertically locked to the display 112 or locked to the horizon. Inother words, if a user changes the vertical orientation of the camera120, the portion of the virtual mask 200 that is shown in display 112may remain constant (assuming there is no horizontal rotation) whenlocked to the viewing screen 112. Alternatively, where the virtual mask200 is locked to the horizon, different portions of the virtual mask aredisplayed as the vertical orientation of the camera 120 is changed,which may be particularly desirable when the virtual mask is athree-dimensional sphere.

The virtual mask 200 allows the user to maintain a sense of positionrelative to the direction of the target item. Further, the mask subtlysuggests direction correction, but does not demand or require it foruser orientation. Conventional techniques of orienting a user inaugmented reality views, on the other hand, does not maintain relevancebetween the user and the target item as the user progresses and providesa sense of urgency to correct the user's orientation, which may not besafe. For example, if a shop across the street and down a block from theuser is the target item, it would be unsafe for the user to facedirectly towards the shop for much of the trip. The user should proceeddown the sidewalk on the opposite side of the street and cross thestreet perpendicular to traffic. Using conventional orientingtechniques, however, provides the user with a sense of urgency to orienttowards the target item while traveling causing the user to ignorepotentially hazardous pedestrian or vehicle traffic.

FIG. 6 is a block diagram of the mobile platform 100 that may use thevirtual mask 200. As illustrated in FIG. 6, the mobile platform includesa means for producing an image, such as camera 120, which may producestill or moving images that are displayed by the mobile platform 100.The mobile platform 100 also includes a means for determining thedirection that the viewer is facing, such as an orientation sensor 130,e.g., a tilt corrected compass including a magnetometer, accelerometeror gyroscope.

Mobile platform 100 may include a receiver 140, such includes asatellite positioning system (SPS) receiver that receives signals from aSPS satellites 102 (FIG. 1) via an antenna 144. Mobile platform 100 alsoincludes a wireless transceiver 145, which may be, e.g., a cellularmodem or a wireless network radio receiver/transmitter that is capableof sending and receiving communications to and from a cellular tower 104or from a wireless access point 106, respectively, via antenna 144 (or aseparate antenna). If desired, the mobile platform 100 may includeseparate transceivers that serve as the cellular modem and the wirelessnetwork radio receiver/transmitter.

The orientation sensor 130, camera 120, SPS receiver 140, and wirelesstransceiver 145 are connected to and communicate with a mobile platformcontrol 150. The mobile platform control 150 accepts and processes datafrom the orientation sensor 130, camera 120, SPS receiver 140, andwireless transceiver 145 and controls the operation of the devices. Themobile platform control 150 may be provided by a processor 152 andassociated memory 154, a clock 153, hardware 156, software 158, andfirmware 157. The mobile platform 150 may also include a means forgenerating the virtual mask, such as a graphics engine 155, which maybe, e.g., a gaming engine, which is illustrated separately fromprocessor 152 for clarity, but may be within the processor 152. Thegraphics engine 155 calculates the position and orientation of thevirtual mask 200 that is displayed on an image produced by the camera120. It will be understood as used herein that the processor 152 can,but need not necessarily include, one or more microprocessors, embeddedprocessors, controllers, application specific integrated circuits(ASICs), digital signal processors (DSPs), and the like. The termprocessor is intended to describe the functions implemented by thesystem rather than specific hardware. Moreover, as used herein the term“memory” refers to any type of computer storage medium, including longterm, short term, or other memory associated with the mobile platform,and is not to be limited to any particular type of memory or number ofmemories, or type of media upon which memory is stored.

The mobile platform 100 also includes a user interface 110 that is incommunication with the mobile platform control 150, e.g., the mobileplatform control 150 accepts data and controls the user interface 110.The user interface 110 includes a means for displaying the imagesproduced by the camera 120 along with overlaid computer generated mask200, such as a digital display 112. The processor 152 controls theposition and orientation of the computer generated mask 200 on the imagebased on the position and orientation of the mobile platform withrespect to a target item. The display 112 may further display controlmenus and positional information. The user interface 110 furtherincludes a means for identifying the target item, such as a keypad 114or other input device through which the user can input information intothe mobile platform 100. In one embodiment, the keypad 114 may beintegrated into the display 112, such as a touch screen display. Theuser interface 110 may also include, e.g., a microphone and speaker,e.g., when the mobile platform 100 is a cellular telephone.

The methodologies described herein may be implemented by various meansdepending upon the application. For example, these methodologies may beimplemented in hardware 156, firmware 157, software 158, or anycombination thereof. For a hardware implementation, the processing unitsmay be implemented within one or more application specific integratedcircuits (ASICs), digital signal processors (DSPs), digital signalprocessing devices (DSPDs), programmable logic devices (PLDs), fieldprogrammable gate arrays (FPGAs), processors, controllers,micro-controllers, microprocessors, electronic devices, other electronicunits designed to perform the functions described herein, or acombination thereof.

For a firmware and/or software implementation, the methodologies may beimplemented with modules (e.g., procedures, functions, and so on) thatperform the functions described herein. Any machine-readable mediumtangibly embodying instructions may be used in implementing themethodologies described herein. For example, software codes may bestored in memory 154 and executed by the processor 152. Memory may beimplemented within the processor unit or external to the processor unit.As used herein the term “memory” refers to any type of long term, shortterm, volatile, nonvolatile, or other memory and is not to be limited toany particular type of memory or number of memories, or type of mediaupon which memory is stored.

For example, software 158 codes may be stored in memory 154 and executedby the processor 152 and may be used to run the processor and to controlthe operation of the mobile platform 100 as described herein. Forexample, a program code stored in a computer-readable medium, such asmemory 158, may include program code to determine a direction that aviewer is facing; to generate a virtual mask; and to display an image ofthe direction that a viewer is facing and a portion of the virtual maskthat is in the direction that the viewer is facing. The program code mayalso determine that the direction that the viewer is facing has changeand to display a different portion of the virtual mask in response.Moreover, program code may determine that the position of the viewerwith respect to the target item has changed and to display a differentportion of the virtual mask in response.

If implemented in firmware and/or software, the functions may be storedas one or more instructions or code on a computer-readable medium.Examples include computer-readable media encoded with a data structureand computer-readable media encoded with a computer program.Computer-readable media includes physical computer storage media. Astorage medium may be any available medium that can be accessed by acomputer. By way of example, and not limitation, such computer-readablemedia can comprise RAM, ROM, EEPROM, CD-ROM or other optical diskstorage, magnetic disk storage or other magnetic storage devices, or anyother medium that can be used to store desired program code in the formof instructions or data structures and that can be accessed by acomputer; disk and disc, as used herein, includes compact disc (CD),laser disc, optical disc, digital versatile disc (DVD), floppy disk andblu-ray disc where disks usually reproduce data magnetically, whilediscs reproduce data optically with lasers. Combinations of the aboveshould also be included within the scope of computer-readable media.

In addition to storage on computer readable medium, instructions and/ordata may be provided as signals on transmission media included in acommunication apparatus. For example, a communication apparatus mayinclude a transceiver having signals indicative of instructions anddata. The instructions and data are configured to cause one or moreprocessors to implement the functions outlined in the claims. That is,the communication apparatus includes transmission media with signalsindicative of information to perform disclosed functions. At a firsttime, the transmission media included in the communication apparatus mayinclude a first portion of the information to perform the disclosedfunctions, while at a second time the transmission media included in thecommunication apparatus may include a second portion of the informationto perform the disclosed functions.

FIG. 7 is a flow chart showing a method of showing the orientationbetween a viewer, as indicated by the camera view, and a target item ina display using a virtual mask. As illustrated in FIG. 7, the targetitem is identified (302). The target item may be identified by userselection, e.g., via interface 110, or by an external source.Identification of the target item includes determining the position ofthe target item with respect to the viewer. For example, the position,e.g., latitude and longitude, of the viewer may be determined using anSPS system, e.g., data from a SPS system is received by the SPS receiver140 (FIG. 6) from which processor 152 calculates the position. Ifdesired, the position may be determined using other techniques anddevices including using data from other various wireless communicationnetworks, including cellular towers 104 and from wireless communicationaccess points 106 or by object recognition using computer visiontechniques. The position of the target item may also be determined,e.g., by retrieving the position from a server on a network via wirelesstransceiver 145. For example, a user may indicate via control menus andkeypad 114 that a specific destination is desired. The mobile platform100 may then retrieve the position, e.g., latitude and longitude, of thedesired destination from a server on a network via wireless transceiver145. The position of the target item with respect to the viewer may thenbe determined.

The direction that the viewer is facing is determined (304), e.g., usingthe orientation sensor 130. It should be understood for purposes of thispatent document, the viewer is presumed to be facing the same directionas that the camera is facing, i.e., the viewer is pointing the camera inthe direction that the user is facing. A virtual mask 200 is generatedto surround the viewer (306), e.g., by the graphics engine 155 shown inFIG. 6, at the determined position of the viewer. The generated virtualmask 200 includes a variation that provides information about thedirection to the target item. The variation in the virtual maskvariation is associated with the position of the identified target item(306) and is independent of the direction that the viewer is facing.Moreover, the generated virtual mask 200 is associated with the positionof the viewer, so that if the viewer moves, the virtual mask moves withthe viewer while maintaining the orientation between the associatedvariation in the mask and the target item. An image of the directionthat the viewer is facing is displayed (308), e.g., as produced by thecamera 120 and a portion of the virtual mask that is in the directionthat the viewer is facing is displayed over the image with the variationin the mask showing the direction to the target item (310). The virtualmask may be displayed over the camera view. If desired, the camera viewmay be removed, e.g., so that the view is blank or filled, but thevirtual mask may remain to serve as a directional compass. As the viewerrotates or changes position, the associated variation on the maskremains oriented towards the target item and, thus, the virtual mask isupdated so that a different portion of the virtual mask is displayed.

The virtual mask 200 may be produced as a three dimensional object,e.g., a virtual cylinder or sphere, that surrounds the viewer in virtualspace. Alternatively, the virtual mask 200 may be produced as atwo-dimensional tiled image that is placed in the two-dimensional userinterface layer. The two-dimensional tiled image slides, e.g., left andright, as the user rotates to emulate the three-dimensional virtualimplementation, i.e., the software emulates holding the virtual maskstill in space while the camera rotates.

By way of example, FIGS. 8, 9, 10, and 11 illustrate examples of anaugmented reality image, including a virtual mask 200, that is displayedto the user on the display 112. FIG. 8, for example, illustrates animage and virtual mask 200 when the user is facing almost directlytowards the target item 220, which in this example is a building. As canbe seen in FIG. 8, little of the virtual mask 220 can be seen in thecorners of the displayed image because the user is facing towards thetarget item 220. If desired, additional augmented data may be displayed,such as an arrow 230 pointing towards the target item 220 and distance240 to the target item 220.

FIGS. 9 and 10 illustrate different images and different portions of thevirtual mask 200 as the user rotates away (to the right) from the targetitem (the target item is no longer seen in FIGS. 9 and 10). As can beseen, the portion of the mask 200 displayed changes based on theorientation of the user with respect to the target item, with more ofthe mask being visible the further the user rotates away from thetarget. In one embodiment, the virtual mask is at least partiallytransparent so that the image of the physical world can be seen underthe mask 200. As can be seen, the mask provides information about thedirection of the target item, in this example by the slanted edges ofthe mask which suggests that the target item is towards the clearerportion of the image. For example, it can be easily determined that FIG.10 shows the user turned further to the right with respect to the targetitem than in FIG. 9. FIG. 11 illustrates one example of a displayedimage of the virtual mask 200 (without the underlying image) when theuser is looking directly away from the target item.

FIGS. 12, 13, 14, and 15 illustrate different examples of cylindricalvirtual masks that may be used. Spherical masks with similarcharacteristics may be used if desired. As can be seen, the virtualmasks provide some indication of direction based on a variation in themask. The variation in the mask may be the masks transparency, color,geometric shape, texture, material, lighting, shading, etc. The maskneed not completely obscure the underlying image but may alter the imageso that the mask is easily discernable in the display.

Some portion of the mask may always be visible to keep the orientationrelevant to the user. The mask 200, thus, provides a clear indication ofthe orientation between the user and a target item and generally how faroff the user is from the direction of the target item. Additionalinformation may also be provided, either separately or by changing themask to give an indication of the distance to the target item.

Although the present invention is illustrated in connection withspecific embodiments for instructional purposes, the present inventionis not limited thereto. Various adaptations and modifications may bemade without departing from the scope of the invention. Therefore, thespirit and scope of the appended claims should not be limited to theforegoing description.

What is claimed is:
 1. A method of showing an orientation between aviewer and a target item in a display, the method comprising: displayingon a display of a mobile platform an image of a direction that theviewer is facing; determining with a processor of the mobile platformthe direction that the viewer is facing; generating with the processorof the mobile platform a virtual mask, the virtual mask having avariation that provides information about a direction to the targetitem, the variation in the virtual mask being associated with a positionof the target item so that the orientation of the variation in thevirtual mask with respect to the target item does not change; anddisplaying on the display of the mobile platform over the image aportion of the virtual mask that is in the direction that the viewer isfacing, wherein the variation in the virtual mask is visible in thedisplay to provide the information about the direction to the targetitem.
 2. The method of claim 1, further comprising determining that thedirection of the viewer has changed and displaying over the image adifferent portion of the virtual mask.
 3. The method of claim 1, furthercomprising determining that the position of the viewer with respect tothe target item has changed and displaying over the image a differentportion of the virtual mask.
 4. The method of claim 1, furthercomprising identifying the target item and determining the position ofthe target item with respect to the viewer.
 5. The method of claim 1,wherein the virtual mask is one of a three-dimensional cylinder orsphere that resides in three-dimensional virtual space.
 6. The method ofclaim 1, wherein the virtual mask comprises a two-dimensional objectthat slides to represent movement of a three-dimensional cylinder orsphere and that resides in a user interface layer.
 7. The method ofclaim 1, wherein the variation in the virtual mask is at least one oftransparency, color, geometric shape, texture, material, lighting, andshading.
 8. The method of claim 1, wherein the variation in the virtualmask is displayed regardless of the direction that the viewer is facing.9. The method of claim 1, wherein an additional visual indication isdisplayed to provide information regarding the target item.
 10. Themethod of claim 9, the additional visual indication includes at leastone of an arrow showing a location of the target item and an indicationof distance to the target item, the indication of distance being atleast one of a change in the variation in the virtual mask, a numericalvalue and a change in the additional visual indication.
 11. The methodof claim 1, wherein an alignment of the portion of the virtual maskdisplayed is vertically locked to a viewing screen or a horizon.
 12. Amobile platform comprising: a camera being operable to produce image ina direction that the camera is facing; an orientation sensor thatprovides data with respect to the direction the camera is facing; aprocessor connected to the camera and the orientation sensor; memoryconnected to the processor; a display connected to the memory; and theprocessor being configured to determine the direction that the camera isfacing using the data from the orientation sensor; to generate a virtualmask having a variation that provides information about a direction to atarget item from a position of the camera, the variation in the virtualmask being associated with a position of the target item so that anorientation of the variation in the virtual mask with respect to theposition of the target item does not change; and to show on the displaythe image from the camera and a portion of the virtual mask that is inthe direction that the camera is facing, wherein the variation in thevirtual mask is visible in the display to provide the information aboutthe direction to the target item.
 13. The mobile platform of claim 12,wherein the processor is further configured to determine that thedirection that the camera is facing has changed using the data from theorientation sensor and to display a different portion of the virtualmask.
 14. The mobile platform of claim 12, further comprising a positionsensor that provides data regarding the position of the camera to theprocessor, wherein the processor is further configured to determine thatthe position of the camera with respect to the target item has changedand to display a different portion of the virtual mask.
 15. The mobileplatform of claim 12, further comprising a user interface connected tothe processor, wherein the processor is further configured to identifythe target item from data provided by the user interface.
 16. The mobileplatform of claim 12, wherein the virtual mask is one of athree-dimensional cylinder or sphere that resides in three-dimensionalvirtual space.
 17. The mobile platform of claim 12, wherein the virtualmask comprises a two-dimensional object that slides to representmovement of a three-dimensional cylinder or sphere and that resides in auser interface layer.
 18. The mobile platform of claim 12, wherein thevariation in the virtual mask is at least one of transparency, color,geometric shape, texture, material, lighting, and shading.
 19. Themobile platform of claim 12, wherein the variation in the virtual maskis displayed regardless of the direction that the camera if facing. 20.The mobile platform of claim 12, wherein the processor is furtherconfigured to display an additional visual indication to provideinformation regarding the target item.
 21. The mobile platform of claim20, wherein the additional visual indication includes at least one of anarrow showing a location of the target item and an indication ofdistance to the target item, the indication of distance being at leastone of a change in the variation in the virtual mask, a numerical valueand a change in the additional visual indication.
 22. The mobileplatform of claim 12, wherein an alignment of the portion of the virtualmask displayed is vertically locked to a viewing screen or a horizon.23. A system for displaying an orientation between a viewer and a targetitem on a mobile platform comprising: means for producing an image of adirection that a viewer is facing; means for determining the directionthe viewer is facing; means for generating a virtual mask, the virtualmask having a variation that provides information about a direction to atarget item, the variation in the virtual mask being associated with aposition of the target item so that an orientation of the variation inthe virtual mask with respect to the target item does not change; andmeans for displaying the image of the direction that the viewer isfacing and displaying a portion of the virtual mask that is in thedirection that the viewer is facing, wherein the variation in thevirtual mask is visible in the means for displaying the image to providethe information about the direction to the target item.
 24. The systemof claim 23, further comprising a means for determining that thedirection of the viewer has changed and displaying a different portionof the virtual mask.
 25. The system of claim 23, further comprising ameans for determining that the position of the viewer with respect tothe target item has changed and displaying over the image a differentportion of the virtual mask.
 26. The system of claim 23, wherein thevirtual mask is one of a three-dimensional cylinder or sphere thatresides in three-dimensional virtual space.
 27. The system of claim 23,wherein the virtual mask comprises a two-dimensional object that slidesto represent movement of a three-dimensional cylinder or sphere and thatresides in a user interface layer.
 28. A non-transitorycomputer-readable medium including program code stored thereon that isexecutable by one or more processors, comprising: program code to causethe one or more processors to determine a direction that a viewer isfacing; program code to cause the one or more processors to generate avirtual mask having a variation that provides information about adirection to a target item from a position of the viewer, the variationin the virtual mask being associated with a position of the target itemso that an orientation of the variation in the virtual mask with respectto the position of the target item does not change; and program code tocause the one or more processors to cause a display to display an imageof the direction that the viewer is facing and a portion of the virtualmask that is in the direction that the viewer is facing, wherein thevariation in the virtual mask is visible in the display to provide theinformation about the direction to the target item.
 29. Thenon-transitory computer-readable medium including program code storedthereon of claim 28, further comprising program code to cause the one ormore processors to determine that the direction that the viewer isfacing has changed and to display a different portion of the virtualmask.
 30. The non-transitory computer-readable medium including programcode stored thereon of claim 28, further comprising program code tocause the one or more processors to determine that the position of theviewer with respect to the target item has changed and to display adifferent portion of the virtual mask.